Polk commission hopefuls face off at Webber forum

BABSON PARK - The four candidates vying for two seats on the Polk County Commission took part in a political forum Wednesday night at Webber International University.

BY TIM CONKLINNews Chief correspondent

BABSON PARK - The four candidates vying for two seats on the Polk County Commission took part in a political forum Wednesday night at Webber International University.

The forum, held at the university's Rex R. Yentes Conference Center, featured Republican Melony Bell and Democrat Jacki Smith, who are competing for Seat 2 on the commission, as well as Seat 4 Democratic incumbent Jean Reed and her challenger, Republican Todd Dantzler.

The fifth annual Webber Student Forum was a class project produced by students from the university's Current Events and Introduction to U.S. Government courses. The forum was moderated by junior pre-law student Torrie McGriff.

More than 60 people attended the two-hour forum, most of them students, and the candidates fielded student questions on a wide range of issues, including job creation, county infrastructure, recreation and arts funding, poverty and homelessness, crime and recidivism, and teen pregnancy rates within the county.

In their opening statements, each candidate explained their reasons for seeking office. Bell said she was motivated to run by what see perceived as "improprieties" in the county's current relationship with its various municipalities, and her desire to see that those municipalities are treated more equally.

Smith cited her past experience with budgets while a federal employee, and was even more direct in her assertions about the current commission. "The majority of the county commissioners are drunk with power," Smith said, "with the exception being Jean Reed."

Dantzler said he wanted to place a stronger focus on job creation, limited spending and public safety. "I think we need stronger, more effective county government," he said.

Reed, the only one of the four candidates who currently serves on the commission, said she was "very proud and honored to be your county commissioner," and that she "loved every minute of serving Polk County."

Unemployment within the county was a primary issue addressed at the forum, as well as how the county can retain its rising workforce. Smith said the county needs to "make it easier for smallbusinesses to build and operate" here.

"We need to bring industry in that will bring the high-paying jobs that you're training for," Smith said.

Smith said later, however, that she was against reducing impact fees to attract new development within the county. "They need to pay the same as everybody else," she said.

Bell said she was in favor of offering incentives for businesses to start within and relocate to the county, citing Legoland and CSX as recent examples, as a way to create high-paying jobs for her two daughters and other young county residents as they enter the workforce. "I want them both to stay here in Polk County," Bell said of her children.

Dantzler said the county needed to "create the environment to create jobs and reduce the barriers," and also cited his desire to see his children remain in Polk County. "We've got to have a quality of life that makes people want to come back here," he said.

Reed cited the county's prime location between Tampa and Orlando as a main selling point in attracting businesses to the region. "We are in the heart of everything," she said.

"We want you to stay here, too, and we want the best and brightest to come to Polk County," Reed said.

The candidates avoided confronting each other directly and were quick to applaud each other's comments during the forum. Still, at least one student said the forum helped her in deciding which candidates she'll vote for in November.

"I think it was successful," said Winter Haven resident Denise Budde, a junior marketing student at WIU who asked the candidates about her concerns regarding the county's infrastructure. "I'm normally not that into politics, but I can definitely tell where my votes will go, just from what they said tonight."